Gone
by just a bit foxy
Summary: It was still dark when Lyle left the Ptolemy that morning.


It was still dark when Lyle left the Ptolemy that morning. He had taken special care not to wake Anew; they had talked late into the night and had fallen asleep in each other's arms. He didn't know what time that had been, but he was fully awake now and yet the sun was only beginning to rise.

_"Most of the world's conflicts are built from misunderstandings and fear because people don't understand. A-Laws was born because of misinterpretion of Celestial Being, after all."_

He rubbed his face and sighed. Ever since she had spoken those words, he'd been unable to stop thinking about them. Sometimes it shocked him how brilliant she was. He didn't know why, really, because she was clearly intelligent.

_'Maybe,'_ he thought, _'I don't want to think about it because I'm afraid she'll realize she can do better.'_

A soft sigh slipped from his lips and he turned his eyes skyward. There were still no plans to return to space he had learnt the previous day. He had tried to talk to Anew about it, but she had made some excuse and left him. He thought he might know why because this reason was the one that made him uninterested in returning to his Gundam. He didn't want to lose her and he didn't want to put her through that sort of grief.

"There you are." Anew's voice said from behind him.

He turned and smiled, noticing that she was wearing his jacket over her shoulders. "Morning," he said, taking the initiative to kiss her.

"Morning," she replied against his lips.

They kissed for a long time, Lyle was sure, but he wasn't sure about time when he was kissing her. All that he was aware of was her. It was like they were the only people in the world. Sometimes he got the overwhelming desire to ask her to run away with him, but they hadn't even know each other a full three months yet. He already knew they were going faster than they should be. He just didn't care and he didn't think she did either. He was sure she would have told him.

"Lyle?" Anew snuggled up into his arms, looking up at him.

He looked down at her and smiled a little. "Yeah?"

"I ..." Her voice trailed away.

"Anew?"

There was no answer. He looked down at her, but her eyes were focused on his shoulder and he couldn't angle himself properly to get a good look at her face.

"Anew? Can you hear me?"

When there was still no answer, he clutched her shoulders. It had happened before, but he'd never been able to bring her out of it. He bit his lip, touching her hair.

"Anew, please say something."

"Mn ..." She sounded disoriented and brought a hand up to her forehead, looking up at him. "What ... Lyle ..."

"It's okay," he assured her even though he wasn't sure at all, "you're all right now."

"My head ..."

"Let's get you inside."

She nodded and let him take her back to his room. They sat together on the bed and he took one of her hands, rubbing his thumb over it. She leant against him and closed her eyes. He brought his free hand up to her hair and played with it, trying to calm himself.

"Are you okay?" Anew asked after a few minutes.

"Don't worry about me." He kissed her hair. "Are _you_ okay?"

"Yes, I feel fine."

"Good ..." He watched her slip his jacket over her shoulders and neatly fold it, laying it on the end of the bed. "Anew ..."

She looked at him, curious. He always felt it was hard to form an proper sentence with her eyes fixed so intently on him. They were wine-red and so unlike anything he'd even seen before. The color itself was different enough, but their clarity and their openness was something he wasn't used to. Then there was when she looked at him; the softness in them was almost too much to bear.

He was personally pleased with himself for the amount of control he'd displayed. He hadn't wanted to do anything without Anew's consent. That was the reason she ended up initiating their first kiss. He liked her a lot. He didn't want to mess that up.

_'I love her.'_

"Lyle?" Anew sounded worried as she touched his arm gently.

_'Is it too fast?'_

She rubbed his arm, movements still gentle.

_'I don't want her to hate me.'_

Her eyes searched his.

_'But she kissed me. She worries about me. She has to feel the same.' _He huffed inwardly, frustrated with himself. He was analyzing everything and it didn't _need_ analysis. It was what it was. He loved her. _'It's not rushing it.'_

"And you tell _me_ I don't pay attention ..." She murmured, gazing at him. "Look what _you're_ doing ..."

He reached out, brushing her hair back, and leaned in. Their lips met barely seconds later and they fell back together onto the bed. Every progression was slow and tender. She didn't stop him and he stopped worrying she would.

Quietly and quickly, they stripped each other of their clothing and Lyle had to keep telling himself not to go too fast for her comfort. She made soft noises as he caressed every inch of skin he could reach and gasped at their union, clutching his shoulders. Soon there was nothing but their breathing, an occasional gasp or moan, and the low mechanical hum above them.

"Lyle ..." Anew's voice was wondering.

He couldn't say anything, lost in the feeling.

_'I love you,'_ his inner voice instructed him to say, _'say it. Say I love you.'_

She gasped and his sense of the world unraveled.


End file.
